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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to eligibility requirements for student loan repayment |
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assistance for certain mental health professionals. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 61.603, Education Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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Sec. 61.603. ELIGIBILITY. (a) Except as provided by |
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Subsection (b), to [To] be eligible to receive repayment assistance |
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under this subchapter, a mental health professional must: |
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(1) apply to the board; |
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(2) have completed one, two, three, four, or five |
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consecutive years of practice in a mental health professional |
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shortage area designated by the Department of State Health |
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Services; and |
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(3) provide mental health services in this state to: |
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(A) recipients under the medical assistance |
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program authorized by Chapter 32, Human Resources Code; |
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(B) enrollees under the child health plan program |
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authorized by Chapter 62, Health and Safety Code; or |
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(C) persons committed to a secure correctional |
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facility operated by or under contract with the Texas Juvenile |
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Justice Department or persons confined in a secure correctional |
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facility operated by or under contract with any division of the |
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Texas Department of Criminal Justice. |
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(b) A mental health professional may also establish |
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eligibility for the repayment assistance under this subchapter by |
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satisfying the requirements of this subsection. To establish |
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eligibility under this subsection, the mental health professional |
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must: |
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(1) apply to the board; |
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(2) provide mental health services to: |
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(A) patients in a state hospital, as defined by |
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Section 552.0011, Health and Safety Code; or |
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(B) individuals receiving community-based mental |
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health services from a local mental health authority that provides |
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the services in accordance with Subchapter B, Chapter 534, Health |
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and Safety Code; and |
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(3) have completed one, two, three, four, or five |
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consecutive years of practice in this state as described by |
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Subdivision (2). |
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(c) In addition to satisfying the requirements under |
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Subsection (a) or (b), for a licensed physician to be eligible to |
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receive repayment assistance under this subchapter after the |
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physician's third consecutive year of practice described under |
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Subsection (a)(2) or (b)(3), as applicable, the physician must be |
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certified in psychiatry by: |
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(1) the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology; or |
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(2) the American Osteopathic Board of Neurology and |
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Psychiatry. |
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SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act to Section |
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61.603, Education Code, applies only to a person who first |
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establishes eligibility for loan repayment assistance under |
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Subchapter K, Chapter 61, Education Code, as amended by this Act, on |
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the basis of an application submitted on or after September 1, 2023. |
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A person who first establishes eligibility on the basis of an |
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application submitted before September 1, 2023, is governed by the |
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law in effect on the date the application was submitted, and the |
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former law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |